On a late summer afternoon in the rural outskirts of Mattawa, Washington, a dispute between neighbors turned deadly, leaving one man shot to death in a pasture behind his home. Fifty-four-year-old Antonio Quiterio Magallon, a Hispanic male, was found by his family members on the ground outside his residence on August 19, 2021. Emergency medical personnel were called to the scene in the 21000 block of Road 24.7 Southwest around 2 p.m., but Magallon was pronounced dead from a gunshot wound.
The Grant County Sheriff's Office investigation into the shooting quickly focused on a neighbor. After reviewing surveillance footage from Magallon's property, investigators and the victim's family identified 56-year-old Juan Manuel Silva Murillo as the alleged gunman. The video captured a chilling sequence of events. It reportedly showed Magallon spraying weeds in his pasture when Silva Murillo shot him twice from a fence line. As Magallon hunched over and tried to move away, Silva Murillo allegedly climbed over the fence, ran towards him, and continued to fire. The footage reportedly showed Silva Murillo standing over Magallon and firing more shots, reloading his weapon at least twice and firing a total of at least 17 rounds.
Later that day, investigators contacted Juan Manuel Silva Murillo by phone, and he agreed to surrender to deputies without incident. He was arrested late Thursday night and booked into the Grant County Jail. Initially held on suspicion of second-degree murder, the charges against Silva Murillo were upgraded to first-degree murder after detectives reviewed the evidence.
Investigators learned of an ongoing dispute between the two men concerning property and cattle, which may have served as the motive for the fatal confrontation. Bail for Silva Murillo was set at $5 million. The case was set for an arraignment later that month as the investigation continued into the violent death that shattered the quiet of the Mattawa community.
